Machines for operating on unattached soles



Nov. 1, 1955 s. F. c. BURKE MACHINES FOR OPERATING ON UNATTACHED SOLES Filed March 22, 1954 7 Sheets-Sheet 1 i I? g 2 Nov. 1, 1955 G. F. c. BURKE MACHINES FOR OPERATING 0N UNATTACHED souas Filed March 22, 1954 7 Sheets-Sheet 2 & R $2 Inventor; Georye f C. Bur/re Nov. 1, 1955 G. F. C. BURKE 2,722,024

MACHINES FOR OPERATING ON UNATTACHED SOLES Filed March 22, 1954 7 Sheets-Sheet 5 Inventor: George '1? C. Bur/ e G. F. C. BURKE MACHINES FOR OPERATING ON UNATTACHEJD SOLES Filed March 22. 1954 Nov. 1, 1955 7 Sheets-Sheet 4 1, 1955 G. F. c. BURKE MACHINES FOR OPERATING ON UNATTACHED souzs 7 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed March 22, 1954 k Unsa- WVW s -4 17111672507"; Geo/ye C. Burke G. F. C. BURKE MACHINES FOR OPERATING ON UNATTACHED SOLES Filed March 22, 1954 Nov. 1, 1955 2,722,024

7 Sheets-Sheet 6 Q g N Nov. 1, 1955 Filed March G- F. C. BURKE MACHINES FOR OPERATING ON UNATTACHED SOLES 7 Sheets-Sheet 7 United States Patent MACHINES FOR OPERATIlglG ON UNATTACHED SOLE George F. C. Burke, Beverly, Mass., assignor to United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Flemington, N. J., a corporation of New Jersey Application March 22, 1954, Serial No. 417,605

8 Claims. (Cl. 12-85.1)

This invention relates to machines for operating on unattached soles and is herein disclosed as embodied in a machine for operating on insoles while the insoles are still mounted on matrices which have been used in the application of reinforcing material to the insoles. A matrix of this type, as shown in United States Letters Patent No. 2,577,750, granted December 11, 1951, on the application of Stanley M. Griswold and Hans C. Paulsen, consists of a flat plate having the peripheral contour of the soles to which the reinforcing material is to be applied. Each face of the matrix has formed in it a groove into which a fold of a sheet of reinforcing material is inserted to form a sewing rib, in accordance with the teaching of United States Letters Patent No. 2,538,776, granted January 23, 1951, on the application of Stanley M. Griswold. A right insole is then cemented to the sheet of reinforcing material covering one face of the matrix and a left insole is cemented to the sheet of reinforcing material covering the opposite face of the matrix, and the two insoles with their reinforcing material, While still on the matrix, are trimmed or rounded close to, but extending slightly beyond, the peripheral contour of the matrix. The trimming operation may, if desired, be performed by a machine of the type disclosed in United States Letters Patent No. 2,564,718, granted August 21, 1951, upon the application of Hans C. Paulsen, which machine has a single pair of trimming knives operable simultaneously on both insoles. The two reinforced insoles and the matrix thus have their peripheral edges all substantially in register with each other and the insoles are held on their matrix by the frictional grip of their sewing ribs against the walls of the grooves of the matrix.

It may be noted that the trimming machine disclosed in said Letters Patent No. 2,564,718 chamfers the insoles as well as rounds or trims them, and also that it leavesthe insoles still on their matrix. The provision of another machine for removing the insoles from their matrix is therefore desirable, especially since the chamfering operation can more conveniently be performed on the removing machine than on the trimming machine, and the trimming machine can accordingly be simplified by the elimination of the chamfering instrumentalities.

In view of the foregoing considerations, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved machine for operating on insoles while the insoles are still attached to their matrices. A feature of the invention consists in the provision of means for feeding an assembly of right and left insoles on their matrix, in combination with means for operating on the insoles and then stripping the insoles from the matrix. The operating means, as shown herein, may consist of two pairs of chamfering knives arranged to chamfer simultaneously both lateral edges of the right and left insoles while the insoles and matrix are being fed. The stripping means may consist of a pair of driven toothed rolls for prying the insoles from the matrix.

This and other features of the invention will appear more fully from the following description when read in Patented Nov. 1, 1955 connection with the accompanying drawings and will be pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a plan view of an illustrative machine embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a left side elevation of the machine;

Fig. 3 is a right side elevation of the machine;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view in elevation, taken on the line IVIV of Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 5 is a sectional view in elevation, taken on the line V-V of Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 6 is a plan view of the forward portion of the machine, on a scale larger than that of Fig. 1;

Fig. 7 is a sectional view of the knife carrier taken on the line VII-VII of Fig. 4;

Fig. 8 is a view, looking in the direction of the arrow VIII on Fig. 4, of an arrangement for clamping a chamfering knife in a block;

Fig. 9 is a sectional view taken on the line IXIX of Fig. 8 and looking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 10 is an angular view of a work piece comprising an assembly of a matrix with right and left insoles thereon; and

Fig. 11 is a cross sectional view of the work piece, taken on the line Xl-XI of Fig. 10.

The machine herein illustrated is arranged to operate simultaneously upon a right insole 20 (Figs. 10 and 11) and a left insole 22, which insoles are assembled in register with each other on opposite faces of a supporting plate or matrix 24 of the type disclosed in United States Letters Patent No. 2,577,750 above mentioned. These insoles extend a very little beyond the periphery of the matrix, the extension being too slight to show in the drawings. Each of the insoles 20 and 22 is a leather having cemented to its flesh surface a fabric reinforcing sheet 26, and each reinforcing sheet has a fold which constitutes a sewing rib 28 and which extends into a groove in the adjacent face of the matrix, the folds having been formed by forcing the fabric into said grooves before the fabric has been cemented to the insole. The grain surfaces of the soles on the matrix are therefore the exposed surfaces. The matrix 24 has also formed in its peripheral edge a groove 29 which is of no interest in relation to the present invention.

The operations of the machine take place progressively in the course of a single continuous passage of a work piece therethrough and they consist in simultaneously chamfering the right and left hand edges of the grain surface of each sole and then in stripping each sole from the matrix 24. A pair of knives 30 and 32 (Figs. 1 and 6) serve to chamfer the right and left hand edges, respectively, of the right sole 2i), and a second pair of knives 34 and 36 (Fig. 4) serve to chamfer the left and right hand edges, respectively, of the left sole 22. Since the right and left soles are mirror images of each other and are assembled on the matrix in register with each :other, the knife 30 is positioned directly over the knife 34, and the knife 32 is positioned directly over the knife 36. The knives 3t) and 34 are mounted, by means later to be described, in a yoke 38 (Figs. 4, 6 and 7) arranged to enable them to follow the contour of the sole edges, and the knives 32 and 36 are similarly mounted in a yoke 40. The stripping of the soles 20 and 22 from the matrix 24 is done by upper and lower stripping rolls 42 and 44 (Figs. 1 and 5), respectively, after the soles,

*still on the matrix, have passed the four chamfering knives above mentioned.

The passage of the work past the chamfering knives and the stripping rolls is effected by four pairs of feed rolls (shown best in Figs. 4 and 5) comprising a first pair 46 and 48, a second pair 50 and 52, a third pair 54 and 56, and a fourth pair 58 and 60, all of which feed rolls, except the roll 60, are driven by means later to be described. The first three pairs of feed rolls engage the exposed grain surfaces of the soles in their passage to and past the chamfering knives, and the fourth pair engage the bare matrix after the soles have been removed therefrom by the stripping rolls. Each feed roll consists of a shaft covered with a hard resilient cushion of rubber or other material capable of gripping the work with adequate feeding friction.

The Work is introduced into the machine by hand. To aline the work in relation to the operating instrumentalities above referred to and also to facilitate its introduction by the operator, the machine is provided with a work table 62 and an edge gage 64. The work is fed toe end first and is gripped by the first pair of feed rolls While still in two point contact with the edge gage 64, as shown in Fig. 1, and it is also gripped by the second pair of feed rolls before it has lost contact with the edge gage 64. Thereafter, until the trailing or heel end of the work passes the third pair of feed rolls, the work is always gripped by a least two pairs of feed rolls which maintain the alinement determined initially by the work table 62 and the edge gage 64.

The supporting structure or frame of the machine comprises a base plate up from which extend various frame members and it is designated generally by the reference numeral 66. The work table 62 is secured upon the frame 66 and the edge gage 64 is mounted upon the work table.

The upper feed rolls 46, t) and 54 of the first three pairs extend between and have their shafts journaled for rotation in a pair of horizontal bars 68 and '79 positioned at the right and left hand sides, respectively, of the machine. The forward end of the bar 68 is pivotally connected by a pin 72 (Figs. 4 and 6) to an arm 74 which extends from a yoke 76 disposed transversely of the machine and having trunnion bearings 78 in the frame 66 at opposite sides of the machine. The rear end of the bar 68 (Fig. 5) is pivotally connected by a pin 80 to an arm 82 pivotally mounted upon a stationary pin 34 secured in the frame 66. The distance between the pin 88 and the stationary pin 84 is equal to the distance between the pin 72 and the right hand trunnion 78, and the distance between the pins 86 and 72 is equal to the distance between the stationary pin 84 and the right hand trunnion 78, the feed roll carrier bar 68 being thus mounted by a parallel linkage which permits it to move heightwise while at all times maintaining it horizontal.

The eft hand feed roll carrier bar 7%) (Figs 1, 2 and 6) is similarly mounted for parallel movement, having its forward end pivotally connected by a pin 35 to an arm 86 extending from the yoke 76, and having its rear end pivotally connected by a pin 87 to an arm 88 mounted for free pivotal movement upon a shaft 90 journaled in bearings in the frame 66 and coaxial with the pin 84, the shaft 9% being driven for a purpose which will later become evident. The upper feed roll carrier bars 68 and 79 are thus maintained parallel to each other and they, together with the upper feed rolls 46, 5G and 54, rise and fall in unison.

The lower feed rolls 43, 52 and 56 of the first three pairs are mounted by a similar parallel linkage for heightwise movement in unison With each other, being journaled in right and left supporting bars 92 (Figs. 3, 4 and 5) and 94 (Fig. 2) which have their forward ends pivotally connected by pins 96 and W to arms 98 and 108 extending from a yoke 1412 having trunnion bearings 104 in the frame 66. The rear ends of the lower feed roll supporting bars )2 and )4 are pivotaliy connected, by pins 166 and 16"] (Figs. 2, 3 and 5), to arms 1G8 and 110 (Fig. 2) which are pivotally mounted, respectively, upon coaxial stationary pins 112 and 114.

Mechanism is provided for coordinating the heightwise movements of the first three pairs of feed rolls in such a manner that when the upper rolls rise the lower rolls will fall and vice versa, the displacement of the upper and lower sets of rolls from a common central plane being always equal. Such coordination is effected by providing a pair of arms 116 extending down from the respective ends of the yoke 76 and a pair of arms 118 extending up from the respective ends of the yoke 102. The free ends of the right hand arms 116 and 118 interengage each other by means of a pin and slot connection 120, and the free ends of the left hand arms 116 and 118 interengage each other by means of a pin and slot connection also numbered 120. A tension spring 122 having one end anchored to a stationary pin 124 and its other end attached to one of the arms 118 yieldingly urges the upper and lower sets of feed rolls toward each other as close as permitted by a stop screw 126 engaging the arm 118. The screw 126 is adjusted to maintain a minimum separation between the upper and lower sets of rolls which is less than the thickness of the thinnest work piece to be operated upon. The spring 122 yields to permit the two sets of rolls to be forced apart as the work piece enters between them; and it holds the rolls in gripping engagement with the work.

The upper feed roll 58 of the fourth pair has a shaft 18 journaled in stationary bearings formed in upstanding portions 130 of the frame 66. The lower feed roll 60 of the fourth pair extends between and is mounted for idle rotation in arms 132 and 134 disposed on the right and left sides respectively of the machine and connected by a yoke bar 136. The yoke comprising the arms 132 and 134 and the bar 136 is pivotally mounted on trunnion bearings 138 in the upstanding portions 130 of the frame 66. A compression spring 140 interposed between the frame and the arm 132 urges the lower feed roll 60 up as far as permitted by a stop screw 142 which adjustably determines an upper limiting position from which the lower feed roll can yield as the matrix 24 passes between the two rolls.

The chamfering knives 30 and 34 operate upon the right hand side of the work piece and they are first engaged by the toe ends of the advancing pair of soles 20 and 22 at a locality between the second pair of feed rolls 50 and 52 and the third pair of feed rolls 54 and S6. The yoke 38 which carries these knives comprises an upright bar 144 (Figs. 4 and 7) from the top and bottom of which extend arms 146 and 148 which are pivotally mounted for swinging movement transversely of the machine on upper and lower coaxial pins 150 and 152. A pair of coaxial upper and lower pins 156 (Fig. 4) and 158 are slidable axially and also free to turn in bearings formed in the upper and lower arms 146 and 148. An upright bar 160 extending parallel to the yoke bar 144 and also to the common axis of the pins 156 and 158 has offset bearing bosses 162 and 164 adjacent to its ends whereby it is rotatably mounted on said pins, being restrained from heightwise movement by the engagement of the end faces of said bearing bosses with the adjacent surfaces of the yoke arms 146 and 148. Surrounding the bearing boss 162 and having one end secured to the bearing boss and its other end anchored in the yoke arm 146 is a torsion spring 166 tending to rotate the bar 160 in a counterclockwise direction (as seen from above) as far as permitted by a stop 168 (Figs. 4 and 7) secured upon the bar 160 and engageable with the adjacent surface of the yoke bar 144. The torsion spring 166 thus tends to hold the bar 160 in a normal or initial angular position from which it can yield.

A block 170 for holding the upper knife 30 is secured in a desired position of heightwise adjustment on the pin 156 by a setscrew 172. The knife 30 which, as shown in Fig. 8, is wedge shaped in cross section, is clamped by a pair of cylindrical sectors 174 and 176 which fit within a bore 177 in the block 170 and which are urged into clamping engagement with the wedge shaped blade of the knife by the engagement of their radial faces with a frusto-conical end of a screw 178 threaded in the block 170. When the screw 178 is tightened, the knife 30 is held rigidly in the block 170. A clearance hole 179 in the block 170 permits the knife 30 to extend down below the block.

The knife 30 is urged down into operative position by a compression spring 180 interposed between the top end of the pin 156 and the base of a recess formed in a member 182 which houses the spring and which is rigidly secured to the upper arm 146 by screws 184. The extent to which the spring 180 can urge the knife 30 down into the work is limited by the engagement of a lower face 186 (Fig. 4) of the block 170 with the surface of the sole 20. Prior to the introduction of a work piece the block 170 occupies an initial position determined by the engagement of the lower end of the knife 30 with a lug 188 extending from the mid portion of the bar 160. Cam surfaces 190 on the block 170 enable the block to ride up from its initial position into engagement with an advancing work piece.

The cutting edge of the knife 30 at the locality wherein it engages the work is substantially in line with the axis of the pins 156 and 158 about which axis the block 170 and the knife fixed therein can turn. The angular position of the block 170 about this axis is controlled by the bar 160 Which has a surface v the block relative to the bar.

The lug 188 on the mid portion of the bar 160 has a smooth vertical surface 193 which engages the edge of the matrix 24 (bridging the groove 29) and thus determines how far the knife 30 will cut inwardly of the edge of the sole 20. Secured to the mid'portion of the bar 160 is a supplemental guide in the form of a leaf spring 194 which has a smooth end portion engageable with the edge surface of the matrix 24. As the Work piece, including the matrix 24, advances, the edge surface of the matrix pushes against the lug 188 (it may first engage the guide spring 194, depending on the shape of the toe end of the matrix) and turns the bar 160, and therefore the block 170 and the knife 30, in a clockwise direction (as seen from above) in opposition to the torsion spring 166. The stop 168 thereupon leaves the surface of the yoke bar 144, and the gaging surface 193, together with the guide 194, assumes control of the angular position of the knife 30. Since the cutting edge of the knife 30 at the locality of operation is substantially in line with the axis about which the knife can turn, the resistance of the work will have no appreciable tendency to turn the knife from its controlled angular position.

The lower knife 34 is clamped in a block 196 which K is similar to the block 170 and is rigidly secured to the pin 158. The initial angular position of the lower knife 34 is determined by the stop 168 and the operating angular position by the gaging surface 193 and the guide 194, the knives 34 and 30 being forced to turn in unison by reason of the sliding non-rotary engagement of their blocks with the bar 160. The lower knife block pin 158, however, has its own compression spring 198 (Fig. 3) which urges the block 196 up into engagement with the work to control the heightwise component of depth of cut independently of the upper knife 30.

The knives 30 and 34 are urged laterally of the work piece, toward the left, into the edges of the soles and 22 by a tension spring 200 (Figs. 1, 4 and 6) secured at one end to the lower yoke arm 148 and anchored at its other end to a post 202 secured in the base of the frame 66. Before the introduction of a work piece into the machine, the spring 200 holds the yoke 38 in an initial position, determined by a stop pin 204 upstanding from the base of the frame 66, with the knives and 34 ready for engagement with the respective soles upon which they are to operate. When a work piece is introduced into the machine the peripheral edge of the advancing matrix 24 at the toe end of the matrix engages the lug 188 (in some 192 slidably engaged by a cases it may engage the guide 194 first), causing the tension spring 200 to yield; and the combined effect of the lug 188 and the tension spring 200 is to control the width of the chamfer cut by the knives 30 and 34 and to cause the knives to follow the peripheral contour of the pair of soles upon which they operate. The feed of the work is fast enough to cause the knives to run off at the heel ends of the soles without completely following the rounded periphery of the heel ends. The work engaging faces of the knife blocks and 196 are held against the soles 20 and 22 by their respective springs and 198 which yield to accommodate any variations of thickness of the Work, thereby maintaining constant the width of the chamfer.

The knives 32 and 36, which operate on the left side of the work piece, are carried by the yoke 40 and in their construction and arrangement are similar to the knives 30 and 34. The yoke 40 is pivotally mounted for lateral swinging movement upon coaxial upper and lower pins 208 and 210, respectively, and is urged toward the right by a tension spring 212 having one end anchored to a post 214 secured in the base of the machine frame 66, the yoke 40 being held initially by the spring 212 against a stop pin 216 upstanding from the base of the frame 66.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 6, the right hand knives 30 and 34 are staggered with respect to the left hand knives 32 and 36 in a direction which is longitudinal of the machine and they are staggered also, in their initial positions, in a transverse direction. The longitudinal stagger is obtained by locating the axis of the yoke pivot pins 150 and 152 farther toward the front of the machine than the axis of the yoke pivot pins 208 and 210, the purpose of this longitudinal stagger being to provide initial clearance between the knife assemblies of the yokes 38 and 40. The transverse stagger is obtained by locating the stop pins 204 and 216 in positions which insure an overlapping of the chamfer cuts at the toe end of the work piece; as shown in Figs. 1 and 6, the initial position of the knife assembly of the left hand yoke 40 is such as to cause the knives 32 and 36 to begin operation on the toe end of the work piece at a locality to the right of the locality at which the knives 30 and 34 began their operation.

The upper and lower stripping rolls 42 and 44 are engaged by the toe end of the advancing work piece after i said toe end has passed the third pair of feed rolls 54 and 56. These stripping rolls are of rubber and have Work engaging teeth the leading faces of which are approximately radial, the upper roll 42 being driven in a direction which. as viewed from the left side of the machine, is counterclockwise, and the lower roll 44 being driven in a direction which is clockwise. Both stripping rolls are concave to insure adequate initial contact with the convex advancing toe ends of the soles 20 and 22. The stripping rolls are staggered longitudinally of the machine for clearance, the upper roll 42 being located farther forward than the lower roll 44. The upper stripping roll 42 therefore engages the sole 20 before the lower stripping roll engages the sole 22 and thus momentarily exerts an unbalanced force upon the work piece. The two pairs of feed rolls 50, 52 and 54, 56 hold the work piece firmly gripped at this time and thus cooperate with the stripping roll 42 by supporting the Work piece against said unbalanced force.

The upper stripping roll 42 is secured upon a shaft 218 journaled in bearings carried by a yoke which comprises right and left hand arms 220 and 222 integrally connected by a cross bar 224 having an offset portion which underlies the roll.

The right hand yoke arm 220 is mounted for pivotal movement on the pin 84 and the left hand yoke arm 222 is mounted for free pivotal movement upon the shaft 90, the pin 84 and the shaft 90 being coaxial. A tension spring 228 having one end secured to the cross bar 224 serves to hold the stripping roll 42 yieldingly in an initial position determined by the engagement of a lug 230 on the yoke arm with a stop pin 232 threaded in the frame 66. As the work piece advances, the upgoing teeth of the stripping roll 42 engage the toe end of the sole 20 (which extends slightly beyond the matrix) and raise it from the matrix 24, drawing the sewing rib 28 up out of its groove in the matrix. Continued advance of the work piece causes the toe end of the matrix to engage the yoke bar 224, which underlies the stripping roll 42, until a rounded forward lower corner of the yoke bar rides on the upper surface of the matrix; the driven stripping roll thus continues to pry the sole loose from the matrix.

The lower stripping roll 44 is similarly secured upon a shaft 234 journaled in bearings formed upon a yoke which comprises right and left hand arms 236 and 238 integrally connected by a crossbar 246 having an offset portion which overlies the roll. The right hand yoke arm 236 is mounted for free pivotal movement on a shaft 242 journaled in a stationary bearing formed in the frame 66. The left hand yoke arm 233 is pivotally mounted for swinging movement upon a pin 244 supported by the frame 66 and coaxial with the shaft 242. The tension spring 223 which, as already stated, has one end secured to the crossbar 224, has its opposite end secured to an arm 246 extending from the crossbar 240, the spring thus serving to hold the stripping roll 44 yieldingly in an initial position determined by the engagement of a lug 248 on the yoke arm with a stop pin 250 threaded in the frame 66. The operation of the lower stripping roll 44 in removing the sole 22 from the matrix 24 is similar to the operation, already described, of the upper stripping roll 42 in removing the sole 2%.

The drive of the feed and stripping rolls is derived from a shaft 252 journaled in bearings supported by the machine frame 66, the shaft being driven by any suitable source of power. Secured upon the shaft 252 is a gear wheel 254 (Figs. 1 and 2) which drives a gear wheel 256 secured upon the shaft of the feed roll 56. The height- Wise movements of the feed roll 56 resulting from the passage of a work piece are so slight as to have no appreciable effect on the smooth running of the gears 254 and 256. Also secured upon the shaft of the feed roll 56 (at the right end portion thereof) is a sprocket wheel 253 (Figs. 3 and 5) which transmits drive through a chain 260 to a sprocket wheel 262 secured upon the shaft of the feed roll 48. A clearance hole 263 for the right end portion of the shaft of the feed roll 56 is provided in an upstanding portion of the frame 66. A gear wheel 264 (Figs. 2 and 3) also secured upon the shaft of the feed v roll 48 meshes with and drives a gear wheel 266 (Figs. 2, 3 and 6) secured on the shaft of the feed roll 46. Also secured upon the shaft of the feed roll 46 is a sprocket wheel 268 (Fig. 2) which transmits drive through a chain 270 (Figs. 1 to 6 inclusive) to a sprocket wheel 272 (Figs. 3 and 5) secured on the shaft of the feed roll 54, said shaft of feed roll 54 passing through a clearance hole 273. Secured on the shaft of the feed roll 52 is an intermediate sprocket wheel 274 in engagement with the chain 268 for driving that feed roll; and secured on the shaft of the feed 3 roll 50 is an intermediate sprocket wheel 276 in engagement with the chain 2'79 for driving the feed roll 50.

For driving the upper stripping roll 42, the left end portion of the shaft of the feed roll 56 has secured upon it a sprocket wheel 273 (Fig. 2) which, through a chain 280, drives a sprocket wheel 282 on the shaft 90; and another sprocket wheel 234, also on the shaft 90, transmits the drive through a chain 286 to a sprocket wheel 288 on the shaft 218 of the upper stripping roll 42. Said left end portion of the shaft of the feed roll 56 passes through a clearance hole in an upstanding portion of the frame 66 in which the shaft has its bearing.

For driving the lower stripping roll 44, the shaft of the feed roll 56 has secured upon it a gear wheel 290 (Figs. 1 and which drives a gear wheel 292 (Fig. 5) secured on the shaft 242. Also secured on the shaft 242 is a sprocket wheel 294 which, through a chain 296, drives a sprocket wheel 293 secured upon the shaft 234 of the lower stripping roll 44.

For driving the upper feed roll 58 of the fourth pair, the shaft 242 has secured upon it a sprocket wheel 300 (Fig. 3) which, through a chain 302, drives a sprocket wheel 364 on the shaft 128 of the upper feed roll 58. The lower feed roll 60 turns idly, no drive being provided for it because the drive of the upper feed roll 58 is sufficient to feed the bare matrix out of the machine.

In operating the machine, a work piece in the form of the matrix 24 having attached upon its upper and lower faces the insoles 29 and 22 is placed upon the work table 62 with its edge in two-point contact with the edge gage 64 and is then. advanced to bring its toe end into the bite of the first pair of feed rolls 46 and 48. The work piece is thus advanced into the bite of the second pair of feed rolls St and 52 and it is thus fed through the machine, its centering and alinement, as established initially by the work table 62 and the edge gage 64, being maintained by the feed rolls. As the toe end of the matrix engages the lug 188 the yoke 33 will yield in accordance with the contour of the right hand edge of the work piece; the chamfering knife will thus follow the contour of the right hand edge of the sole 20 and the chamfering knife 34 will follow What is actually the left hand edge of the inverted sole 22. The left hand edge of the work piece will be operated on in a similar manner by the knives 32 and 36, the operations upon the respective lateral edges of the work piece taking place simultaneously except for the slight clearance displacement of the yokes 38 and 40 in the direction of feed. The advance of the work piece is continued by the third pair of feed rolls 54 and 56, beyond which the stripping rolls 42 and 4-4 operate in the manner already explained to remove the soles from the matrix; and the fourth pair of feed rolls 58 and 60 carry the bare matrix out of the machine.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

l. In a machine for operating on insoles detachably mounted on supporting plates, means for feeding an insole and supporting plate assembly in the direction of the length of the insole, a tool for operating on an edge of the insole as the assembly is fed, and a tool engageable with the insole to pry the insole off its supporting plate while the assembly is fed, the feeding means being constructed and arranged to cooperate with the prying tool by supporting the supporting plate against the force exerted by the prying tool.

2. In a machine for operating on insoles detachably mounted on supporting plates, a work table, an edge gage for determining the alinement of an insole and supporting plate assembly on the work table, means for feeding the assembly along a path extending in the direction of the length of the assembly as said direction is determined by the work table and the edge gage, a tool initially positioned in the path of feed of the assembly and yieldable transversely of said path to follow the contour of the edge of the insole for operating upon said edge, and a tool in said path of feed for prying the insole off the supporting plate as the assembly is being fed.

3. in a machine for operating on reinforced insoles sewing ribs extending into grooves in matrices which have substantially the contour of the insoles, a wor'table, an edge gage for determining the alinement of an insole and matrix assembly on the work table, means for feeding the assembly along a path extending in the direction of the length of the assembly as said direction is determined by the work table and the edge gage, a pair of chamfering knives initially positioned in the path of feed of the assembly and individually yieldable transversely of said path in opposite directions to follow the contours of the respective lateral edges of the insole 9 for operating upon said edges, and a driven toothed roll in said path for prying the insole off the matrix as the assembly is being fed.

4. In a machine for operating on reinforced insoles assembled in pairs on common matrices with the right and left insoles of each pair in register with each other on opposite faces of their matrix, means for feeding each assembly of matrix and insoles lengthwise in a predetermined path, means for operating on each insole as the assembly is being fed, and means for stripping the insoles off their matrix as the assembly is being fed.

5. In a machine for operating on the edges of insoles assembled in pairs on common matrices with the right and left soles of each pair in register with each other on opposite faces of their matrix and the matrix having a peripheral edge in register with that of the soles, means for feeding each assembly of soles and matrix longitudinally in a substantially rectilinear path, a pair of chamfering knives for operating on the edges of the right and left soles of each pair on one side of the path of feed, a common carrier for said pair of knives, a spring for urging the carrier transversely of the path of feed toward the assembly of soles and matrix to maintain the knives in operative engagement with the sole edges, and a guide on the carrier engageable with the peripheral edge of the matrix and cooperating with the spring to cause the knives to follow the peripheral contour of the soles.

6. In a machine for operating on the edges of insoles assembled in pairs on common matrices with the right and left soles of each pair in register with each other on opposite faces of their matrix and the matrix having a peripheral edge in register with that of the soles, means for feeding each assembly of soles and matrix longitudinally in a substantially rectilinear path, a pair of chamfering knives for operating on the edges of the right and left soles of each pair on one side of the path of feed, a common carrier for said pair of knives, a spring for urging the carrier transversely of the path of feed toward the assembly of soles and matrix to maintain the knives in operative engagement with the sole edges, a guide on the carrier engageable with the peripheral edge of the matrix and cooperating with the spring to cause the knives to follow the peripheral contour of the soles, a pair of blocks mounted on the carrier for independent heightwise movement relatively to the sole and matrix assembly, means for securing respectively the knives to the blocks, and springs for urging the blocks toward each other, said blocks being constructed and arranged to bear against the exposed surfaces of the soles under pressure of their respective springs to gage the depth of cut of their respective knives.

7. In a machine for operating on reinforced insoles having sewing ribs extending into grooves in matrices which have substantially the peripheral contour of the insoles, means for feeding an insole and matrix assembly, a driven toothed roll, a carrier in which said roll is journaled, a support on which the carrier is mounted for movement of the roll heightwise of the insole, a stop engageable with the carrier to determine the initial heightwise position of the roll, a spring for holding the carrier initially against the stop with the roll in the path of the advancing insole and matrix assembly, and means for driving the roll in a direction to lift the toe end of the advancing sole from its matrix, whereupon the toe end of the advancing matrix pushes against the carrier and causes the carrier to yield heightwise in opposition to the spring, said carrier being constructed and arranged to bear upon the face of the matrix as the matrix continues to advance, and the driven roll, thus held between the matrix and the insole, continues to strip the insole from the matrix.

8. In a machine for operating on the edges of insoles assembled in pairs on common matrices with the right and left soles of each pair in register with each other on opposite faces of their matrix, the matrix having a peripheral edge in register with that of the soles and each sole having a sewing rib extending into a groove in the matrix, the combination of means for feeding the sole and matrix assembly, a pair of toothed stripping rolls staggered for clearance along the path of the advancing work, a carrier for each roll mounted for movement of its roll heightwise of the sole and matrix assembly, spring means urging the carriers heightwise in opposite directions into the path of feed, a stop for determining the initial position of each carrier in opposition to the spring means, and means for driving the rolls in opposite directions to cause them to raise the toe ends of the advancing soles successively from their matrix and to strip the soles from the matrix as the work continues to advance, each carrier being constructed and arranged to ride up over the toe end of the advancing matrix in opposition to the spring means, and to bear against the face of the matrix from which its associated roll is stripping a sole.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,179,493 Ball Apr. 18, 1916 1,265,337 Isert May 7, 1918 1,794,604 Gardner Mar. 3, 1931 1,987,809 Wernmark Jan. 15, 1935 2,314,541 Hyland et al Mar. 23, 1943 2,649,909 Lilley et al. Aug. 25, 1953 

